lazuras_dc said:

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Can anyone explain the Craig Jones "keep BJJ gay" thing ??

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I also think it's better to consider Craig jones a comedian with world class jiu jitsu.

But with all the joking and bs I think he really delivered at his event.

He's hilarious and it also helps that his BJJ and reputation are world class. Plus, Gordon Ryan's public persona makes Jones seem even cooler, funnier and more humble. It's almost like Chael Sonnen and Tito Ortiz back in the UFC days re the trash talk.

Yep. I got put to sleep by a female training partner (by mounted triangle choke) and the only thing on my mind as I was going out, was realizing she didn't feel my way-too-late-tap.

Waking up was hilarious and we had a good laugh.

Rank? - 4 stripe purple
Time training BJJ? - ~5 yrs
Trains out of: Marcello Garcia Dallas
Gi or No-Gi? - Hate the gi but will do it anyway; prefer no Gi
Favorite strangle/choke? Tough- tie between arm in Guillotine and arm triangle
Favorite leg locks? Any heel hook, straight ankle from 50/50
Favorite armlocks? Inverted Arm Bar or Marcelo Garcia style shotgun style Arm Bar
Favorite pin/control positions? Mount
Favorite guards? Butterfly Half
Favorite passes? Anything to force half guard, pressure from there.
Favorite takedowns? Arm Drag variations, anything to get to a headlock to pull down to the mat. trying to figure out foot sweeps
What are you working on now? 2 on 1 offensive grip variations, certain arm bar attacks from mount.
Guard Pull? Yes early and often; too old to really want to wrestle or do much standing
Wrist Lock? Yes while doing a Jaba the hutt style laugh
What is your kryptonite? Wrestling

ETA - 40 yrs Old, 225Lbs

Rank? - Brown
Time training BJJ? - 8 yrs
Trains out of: Rilion Gracie Energy Corridor
Gi or No-Gi? 95% Gi
Favorite strangle/choke? Darce, Ezekiel
Favorite leg locks? Ankle lock
Favorite armlocks? Kimura, Americana, Shotgun Arm Bar
Favorite pin/control positions? Gift wrap
Favorite guards? DLR or X
Favorite passes? Torreando, stack, knee slide
Favorite takedowns? Snap down or ankle pick
What are you working on now? Slowing down quicker opponents which are many since I'm 56yo.
Guard Pull? Too often
Wrist Lock? Occasionally just to F with my long time partners
What is your kryptonite? High level heavy partners with low center of gravity

Apache said:

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I'm 45 and just started in April. If I can be a purple belt by age 50 I will be pretty proud of that! Good job!

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Belts are such a nebulous thing... at this point I would be honored to get a Black Belt but honestly just doing it for the camaraderie, physical fitness and smugness of knowing I can kill/break most men my age.

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This.

At this point in my BJJ career, I can probably avoid fights by trying to tell people exactly what BJJ is and the IBJJF rules. They'll tap to boredom.

Actually, I do feel the same about the belts. Belts cause more people to stress out, quit, etc. when they should just focus on the other things.

From a BJJ standpoint, I had a lot more fun as a shredded, hungry purple belt then now as an aging upper belt.

I'm not shredded or hungry

I told them I am not competing since I have so many old injuries (and hey look one of them is causing me to be out a year) and can care less about belts. I can see belts being useful in the evening classes that have around 40 people but I used to go to morning and sometimes lunch classes that were 20 people and smaller. We all knew each others' ability even when we did nogi

Plus you have black belts from other martial arts, wrestlers, boxers, etc. that once they get on the mats you know they are skilled beyond their belts. Or at a gym like ours black belts are tough as heck to get, we have a retired green beret that taught combatives and is still a brown belt even though he has been doing bjj for 16 years now. Doesn't help the owner is a retired SEAL

Congrats!

Keep it up! Congrats!

Max Power said:

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In a total surprise last night I got promoted to blue belt. I got my 4th stripe not that long ago so it was the last thing I expected. No false modesty here but I don't know that it felt deserved, but it was really appreciated. They normally do belt promotion ceremonies twice a year, once in the winter and another in early summer, though there is the occasional individual promotion from time to time. It was pretty cool as it happened in a class I don't normally go to that's much larger than my normal ones. Just wanted to say that BJJ has been great, nothing comes easy for me in there, but I just keep showing up and try to get a little better each time. A big part of why I started going was lurking here and seeing all the positivity, and it compelled me to go out on a limb at 42 years old and try something completely out of my comfort zone.

Just wanted to share that and say thanks convincing me to take that first step and to continue going when I felt like I'd never figure anything out. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, if you're at all curious then go take a class. Even at my age you're not too old to learn something new and better yourself.

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Congrats for sure.

Don't worry about feeling like you don't deserve it. Imposter syndrome is real when you get promoted.

Enjoy it!

Congrats on your promotion to Blue Belt! Now don't be a 'Blue Belt Gone Missing' on the side of the milk carton haha.

Keep up the hard work and enjoy!

I know this is a biased thread but what're y'all's thoughts on MMA vs. BJJ ? Mainly for self defense training. But also 5 y/o Son is doing BJJ and loving it. I gotta start training something soon so he doesn't surpass the old man.

MMA is very tough on the body and getting hit in the head when you are old isn't the same. BJJ is something you can do almost everyday and remain pretty healthy. 90% of fights end up with someone grabbing someone or on the ground practice you basic kicks and punches.

We do combatives at our gym twice a week so we get the best of both worlds. They also started one MMA / muai Thai class a week as well

Does typical MmA class involve a lot of sparring and getting punched in the head?

It depends. I've seen some schools call it 'MMA' when it's really nothing more than an MMA inspired fitness routine (kind of like cardio kickboxing). Fitness, bags, pads, etc. and filled with hobbyists.

At other schools, it's true MMA with a ton of sparring and contact (and filled with fighters). Best just to check it out and talk to the instructors about the goal/intent of the MMA training.

Missed your original question. IMO, MMA is superior to BJJ in the self-defense space (and I say that as a BJJ Black Belt). But BJJ is still useful, can be learned more quickly and be trained more continuously. Plus, you don't have to get hit in the face repeatedly in BJJ.

Logic is this….MMA gives you more tools that are more applicable in a wider range of situations. BJJ gives you very specialized tools applicable in one situation (ground fighting).

I've trained tons of BJJ and a little MMA, mostly because I didn't like getting punched in the face. Neither sport is effective against a gun, most weapons, etc anyway so try them both out and see what you like.

If you train MMA (and BJJ to a much lesser extent) be prepared to explain to your coworkers/clients those black eyes, abrasions, etc. While my returning customers get a laugh at me explaining a new minted completely purple ear, new customers will look at me like I'm a psychopath.

My instructor and his wife are both extremely active on the IBJJF competition circuit and she occasionally has scratches, black eyes, etc from training.

They've joked that they no longer go out together when she's injured b/c people have tried to confront him in the past.

Ha ha wow!

In addition to what's previously been said you probably want to be even more careful looking for a MMA gym than BJJ. I'm sure there's great MMA gyms out there that don't put up with meatheads but I'd venture to say there's a higher chance to find one with bad apples than in BJJ. Injuries in training/sparring are directly correlated with your training partners. They teach self defense in most BJJ gyms but it's going to be a fairly small amount. I would say that the judo aspect of BJJ can help to know how to move another person while they're standing up if you get your hands on them, that gets them on the ground.

If you train with bad partners then watch some Fight Club to see what those office interactions might look like.

Congrats on the blue belt!


I only do striking and mma with my trusted bjj training partners.

The school I go to offers BJJ and self-defense. They do teach striking, but it's mostly minimal contact so I don't know if it is truly the most effective way. I would imagine getting punched in the face while training would much better prepare you for a true self-defense situation.

You might want to look into Krav Maga schools.

I'm conflicted on the Krav Maga schools. On the one hand they focus purely on self defense and many folks enjoy it. But I've seen Krav Maga guys go full speed against MMA guys and it's never ended well for the Krav Maga guys. The striking, speed and wrestling of the MMA guys has overwhelmed them.

But it's a small sample size and limited to only a handful of instances. So who knows?

The other element of self defense that's often overlooked. Cardio….as in the ability to run away! Another reason sprints and conditioning is important no matter which martial are you choose.

And shrill screaming. Gotta work on those pipes. That's my plan.

Sweep4-2 said:

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My instructor and his wife are both extremely active on the IBJJF competition circuit and she occasionally has scratches, black eyes, etc from training.

They've joked that they no longer go out together when she's injured b/c people have tried to confront him in the past.

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If it were my wife Id be like, "well she wouldn't tap!"

MMA gyms are all over the place, in my area I went to one and they rarely did full speed sparring where head hits where allowed. Growing up I went to a place with a couple pro fighters and they sparred a lot. I remember going against Mike Brown when he was in town and that dude could punch, thought since he was a little guy that I could overpower him (I was 18 and 210 at the time, he was around 160) but dang I saw Tweety Bird a lot.

I think contact gyms are all over the place. Some drill but never go full speed, some are all out crazy. If you are looking for self defense I would try a few gyms out with people that have actually relied on it in real life. Our gym is owned by a retired SEAL, our combatives class is mostly taught by a retired green beret that taught it in the military, muay thai is taught by someone that trained under a SEAL for 15 years, and we are all allowed to train at a local boxing gym since the owner of that also does BJJ now.

I tried out several BJJ gyms that only focused on competition based techniques, I found the gym I go to does a good job of mixing in competition and practical. They do a great job with the kids too of what techniques to use in class/competition versus the real world. Even to the point of what moves not to use against bullies since it could seriously harm someone, just use it if someone is trying to put your life in danger.

Sweep4-2 said:

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I'm conflicted on the Krav Maga schools. On the one hand they focus purely on self defense and many folks enjoy it. But I've seen Krav Maga guys go full speed against MMA guys and it's never ended well for the Krav Maga guys. The striking, speed and wrestling of the MMA guys has overwhelmed them.

But it's a small sample size and limited to only a handful of instances. So who knows?

The other element of self defense that's often overlooked. Cardio….as in the ability to run away! Another reason sprints and conditioning is important no matter which martial are you choose.

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So, I'm in and on going discussion with my brother and his father in law on this exact same thing.
My brother has almost no experience in any martial art. His FIL was a collegiate wrestler back in the day & he does Krav Maga now, and as you say, does seem to enjoy it.

Topic of discussion is which martial art to put the kids/grandkids/nieces & nephews in. My brother thinks that striking/pressure points and all that jazz is what they need to know (again, zero martial arts experince) and his FIL is of the mindset that avoiding going to the ground is best. (Former wrestler, doesn't want to fight on the ground anymore etc) I understand what he means there, I get it. However, when a woman/girl is attacked, the entire point of the attacker is to get them to the ground/floor/bed whatever & they need to have a plan when that happens. Striking/pressupre points etc etc arent going to do anything against a 200+lb drug/alcohol fuled attacker. (We saw a lesser version of this in the recent olympics a 135lb girl just isn't going to hurt an attacker bad enough in most situations)

I started my Martial Art journey with Muay Thai & did several years of it. I Highly recommend that everyone know learn a hard striking martial art & Muay Thai is one of the best. However, once I was on my back in a Jiu Jitsu class, everything I thought I knew, including what I "learned" when I was a correctional officer, was virtually useless. (I do know a wrist lock and a trick or two from those days that work here and there)

IF you have a job (cop, first responder etc) where you could have to deal with someone, you are going to want to know how to strike from a distance ( I do NOT want to be closer than I have to with a homeless person) But you are also going to need to know what to do with them once you are on the ground & odds are that you will be on the ground.

Should you MIX your martial arts? Absolutely. Learn a hard striking/knees/elbow martial art. But get real good at controlling someone on the ground.

If you can only learn one martial art, learn Jiu Jitsu.

I agree with ya re BJJ being a great one-martial art to focus on. But I'd put Judo a very, very close second. It brings an element of footwork, distance, posture, grip fighting, etc that BJJ largely ignores.

But for me BJJ wins out because of the large number of high quality schools, the defensive/escapes, and being able to fight off one's back.

If the commitment is high enough and there was a decent school then I would probably choose Judo over BJJ. But given the options of schools and the steep learning curve it's understandable why one would pick BJJ. Most high level Judo guys that have come through our schools have a strong katame(grappling) game and could kill you from standing.

For me it's mainly because in BJJ we can just say 'that thing where you grab here and squeeze that other thing' instead of complex Japanese words and phrases.

I mean, I can barely speak English correctly so adding Japanese is a non-starter. Hence, my focus on BJJ.

I can do fine against Judo guys once we are on the ground. But traveling to the ground is not enjoyable for me haha.

lazuras_dc said:

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Does typical MmA class involve a lot of sparring and getting punched in the head?

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The ones that I have been a member of that did legit training for fighters kept the head shots to a minimum. I'm not going to say that it NEVER happened, but it was very light and no full on punching in the face.

If a guy had a real fight coming up & they were sparring, they would typically be wearing head gear.

Under normal circumstances however, hitting in the head was kept to a minimum and very light, if ever. Punches would be pulled before full contact was made. They know that you're new so a good instructor will pair you with someone more mature.

Having said all that. I honestly believe that everyone needs to ride the lighting and know what its like to get hit in the face. Your fear of it actually happening will fade. You'll also get better at covering up, blocking & ducking.